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Major oil importers in Asia like China and India have been pressured by oil prices which have soared since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February.

Soaring energy prices have caused inflation to spike around the world and triggered cost of living crises across both developed and emerging economies.

Saudi Arabia's energy minister has said OPEC+ will keep politics out of its decision-making in favor of the “common good” of stabilizing energy prices.

Sanctions on Russia are likely to lead to higher prices, and Middle East nations don't seem ready to increase supply, said Helima Croft of RBC Capital Markets.

The UAE's energy and infrastructure minister said Monday that Russia will always be part of OPEC+ even as governments shun Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

Oil prices declined on Monday as a fresh set of lockdowns in China — the world's largest oil importer — sparked demand slowdown fears.

In 2021, the European Union imported 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia, according to the International Energy Agency.

There's been a “significant uptick” in Russian oil deliveries bound for India since March after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, industry observers say.   

“I will not give them for free to Mr. Putin,” TotalEnergies CEO says of the company's Russian assets.

Qatar's foreign minister said some countries were considering a “parallel system” of pricing oil, as the economic impacts of the Ukraine crisis hit home.